A Little Taste of Mutiny

[babylonsister]

A Little Taste of Mutiny
By Craig Crawford | 6:41 AM; Oct. 09, 2007 | Email This Article

Just when it seemed that the Democrats running Congress had given up their losing battle with President Bush over the war, along came his veto last week of an expansion of the federal children’s medical insurance program. While the two issues have nothing substantively in common, they are absolutely connected politically.

The president’s war critics on Capitol Hill are searching for any area of disagreement with Bush that might generate enough Republican votes to override one of his many threatened vetoes — and thereby, perhaps, undermine his clout going into the next Iraq showdown.

To that end, Democrats are launching a two-week public relations campaign to pressure more Republicans to vote against Bush’s veto of the bill expanding the State Children’s Health Insurance Program. Sixty-seven senators voted to clear the bill, precisely the two-thirds majority required to guarantee an override. But only 265 House members did likewise; to assure victory, the legislation’s advocates need to find 25 more lawmakers to join their side.

While Democrats care deeply about providing health care to more poor kids, the SCHIP fight also represents an important moment in their ongoing effort to peel Republicans away from their White House loyalties — in the hope that such a mutiny will encourage more GOP defections in the Iraq debate as the 2008 congressional election draws nearer. And so Rahm Emanuel of Chicago, the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, wasted no time connecting the two issues when talking to reporters right after Bush issued his veto, accusing the president of seeking an “open wallet” for Iraq but an “empty stocking” for children without medical insurance.

Even if Democrats can’t find the votes in the House to enact the health bill over Bush’s veto, they’re calculating that a victory in at least the Senate might chip away at the president’s overall authority. And portraying Republicans who vote with Bush on SCHIP as “hurting children,” as Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid did last week, could force some GOP lawmakers facing close 2008 races to either hop on the coming override bandwagon or soften their pro-war stance to please swing voters — or both.

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http://www.cqpolitics.com/2007/10/craig_crawfords_1600_a_little.html#more

[groovedaddy]

1. The date beyond which the public won't remember...

The g.o.p. "machine" must have a date in mind, particularly with regard to Iraq policy/funding, as to when they have to break with Bush or suffer the consequences in November, 2008 -or as early as the primary, but that's unlikely.
The same with SCHIP, though clearly many Repubs are already breaking.
That end date (point past which the public won't remember) is dependent upon MSM cooperating and no longer reminds the public which reps/sens said/did what and when.